Uddingston Grammar 1

St Ambrose HS 1

Declan Duffy was the hero as the St Ambrose keeper saved multiple penalties to ensure St Ambrose won the Scottish schools league cup 4-2 on penalties against an unlucky Uddingston Grammar.

A dramatic penalty shootout saw Ben O'Brien put his spot kick in the bottom left hand corner to win the cup for St Ambrose after it finished 1-1 after full time.

Uddingston however were the team to go in front after four minutes, Aaron Davies getting in behind the St Ambrose defence and coolly lifting it over the keeper to give Uddingston an early lead. St Ambrose had a few half chances throughout the half, Eli Simpson and O’Brien looking particularly dangerous down the middle.

Despite their pressing and hard work up front, the Uddingston defence stood firm and were able to withstand the pressure as they went into the break in the lead.

Half Time:

Uddingston Grammar

1-0

St Ambrose HS

Hard tackles were coming thick and fast at the start of the second half as tensions built up and nerves began to creep in for both sides.

Uddingston becoming increasingly drained in the heat and St Ambrose running out of time to find an equalizer. Finally St Ambrose found that equalizer. O’Brien got his goal in the 69th minute.

A fine save from the initial shot by the Uddingston keeper wasn’t dealt with and the ball fell back to O’Keefe who blasted it into the net, to the delight of his coaches and team-mates. St Ambrose weren’t finished as they looked to kill the game off. Uddingston held firm once more and the game rolled on to penalty kicks.

Full Time:

Uddingston Grammar

1-1

St Ambrose HS

The goalkeepers got the better of the penalty takers in the first round of penalties, both saving the penalties that were shot at them.
Both sides converted in the next round of penalties. However in the next round Duffy saved the Uddingston spot kick and this gave St Ambrose the advantage after Peter Anderson converted.
The big task was left to goal scorer Ben O'Brien who blasted the ball home and brought the cup home to St Ambrose.

Aaron Davies was a constant threat to the St Ambrose backline. He hassled them all game and was defending from the front all game with constant pressure. He was rewarded with a well taken goal but it wasn’t enough for his side on the day.

Lewis O’Keefe did a similar job to Davies, only for St Ambrose. He never gave the Uddingston backline a minute’s peace and eventually levelled the game for his side. He also expertly dispatched of the winning penalty, despite all the pressure on his shoulders.

Magic Moment

Uddingston Grammar

St Ambrose HS

The opener for Davies was as good as it got for Uddingston who would have hoped that Davies finish would have pushed them on to collect the trophy, but it wasn’t to be.

O’Keefe’s winning penalty ensured the trophy for St Ambrose in dramatic fashion after a long and hard game where they were pushed all the way. O’Keefe wheeled away in jubilation and the celebrations began in the St Ambrose camp.